Hoppers' ninth-inning rally falls short

Ernny Ordoñez stays hot with 3-run home run and double in loss for Greensboro

Greensboro's Ernny Ordoñez (from right) high-fives teammates Endy Rodriguez and Sammy Siani. (Kaylen Ayres/contributed photo)

By Jeff Mills

July 1, 2022

HICKORY ― Crawdads reliever Leury Tejada wriggled out of a bases-loaded jam in the top of the ninth inning and host Hickory rallied from a 4-0 deficit to defeat the Greensboro Grasshoppers 6-5 at L.P. Frans Stadium on Thursday night. Ernny Ordonez went 2-for-4 with a home run, a double

HICKORY ― Crawdads reliever Leury Tejada wriggled out of a bases-loaded jam in the top of the ninth inning and host Hickory rallied from a 4-0 deficit to defeat the Greensboro Grasshoppers 6-5 at L.P. Frans Stadium on Thursday night.

Ernny Ordonez went 2-for-4 with a home run, a double and three RBIs to lead the Hoppers (3-3 second half, 30-41 overall).

Greensboro’s Endy Rodriguez went 3-for-4. Dariel Lopez and Jackson Glenn had two hits and an RBI apiece.

Right-hander Michell Miliano (1-2) took the loss in relief. He was charged with three earned runs in ⅔ of an inning, facing five batters and allowing two walks and a home run.

Starting pitcher Sean Sullivan deserved better, striking out four in six scoreless innings. But relievers Logan Hofmann, Miliano and Cameron Junker all gave up runs over the next two innings.

The Hoppers had one last chance to rally. Sammy Siani drew a walk leading off the ninth, and Rodriguez singled to send Siani to third.

Lopez drove in a run with a sacrifice fly. Abraham Gutierrez’s double and Ordoñez’s walk loaded the bases with one out. But Tejada struck out Hudson Head and Glenn to end it.

NOTES

Greensboro is 12-12 in one-run games this season. The Hoppers have won 11 of their last 18 one-run games.
Infielder Dariel Lopez has hit safely in 14 of his last 16 games, going 24-for-70 (.343) with five home runs, three doubles, 15 RBIs and 16 runs scored. He has eight multi-hit games in that span.
Endy Rodriguez went 3-for-4 with a run scored. Rodriguez has hit safely in 13 of his last 17 games, going 19-for-56 (.339) with eight doubles, a home run and 11 RBIs. The versatile 22-year-old is rated by MLB Pipeline as Pittsburgh's No. 7 prospect, and he has played four positions ― catcher, first base, second base and left field ― this season.
Utility player Ernny Ordoñez went 2-for-4 with a three-run home run, his 10th o the season. Since June 1 he has hit safely in 12 of 16 games, with seven home runs, four doubles and 20 RBIs in that span.

In his career at the News & Record, journalist Jeff Mills won 10 national and 12 state writing awards from the Associated Press Sports Editors, the Society for Features Journalism, and the N.C. Press Association.